Whole wheat pasta is not to everyone’s taste but it does give a slightly rustical feel to a dish, not to mention it is much healthier. This simple, 15-minute dish makes a great, light, vegetarian, take to work lunch, equally enjoyable served hot or cold.

O course if whole-wheat is not your cup of tea just use regular pasta. The ingredients are very simple and easily available, and the prep time is 15-20 minutes.

Star by putting the kettle on for the pasta, while the water is getting to a boil we’ll prepare the rest of the ingredients. Slice the cherry tomatoes in half, set them aside. Wash the fresh spinach leaves and drain of excess water. Crumble the ricotta cheese with your hands, in large chunks and put them in a bowl. Mince the garlic.

When the water is boiling put in the pasta. Get a medium-sized skillet put it on high heat, coat with a little olive oil.

When the oil is hot pop in the garlic and let slightly brown. Add the cherry tomatoes and saute for 2minutes. in with the spices: salt, thyme, and basil (preferably fresh). Stir and let sizzle for a minute. By this point, the pasta should be cooked al dente.

Drain the pasta and add it to the pan, retain some of the starchy cooking water. Sautee the lot until the pasta has completely soaked the sauce in the pan, adding a little cooking water if necessary.

Remove the pan from the burner, add in half a tbsp of butter and combine until everything comes together. At the very last moment, just before serving add in the fresh spinach leaves and mix everything together. The spinach leaves go in last, they are not supposed to cook thru in order to preserve the fresh texture.

Serve on the plates, top with the crumbled ricotta cheese and freshly ground black pepper. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil.